Love In A Time of Crisis
by DV8playa
Summary: This is an Edward and Winry kiss scene. Yes, there are quite a few factual innacuracies in it, but the focus is the kiss, not how true it is to the series.


Edward Elric stood on the balcony of his Central City hotel room. His automail glinted in the moonlight. He was having trouble sleeping, so he quietly went outside for some fresh air. With Scar still on the loose, he wasn't permitted to leave the hotel. He had been cooped up there for three days. While he could have anything he needed at the hotel, he was still getting ancy. In the room behind him, his childhood friend Winry Rockbell slept. Ed's brother Alphonse Elric watched over her, since he doesn't sleep. He was a vigilant guard over her, too. Ed loved Winry. Loved her so much, in fact, that he would give up everything for her. He did often wonder if him and her could lead a life together, after everything in their current lives settled down. He did not wonder about that this night, though. He was worried about Scar. He was worried about what he could do, and why he was killing. Suddenly, Ed's train of thought was broken when he heard the hotel door open. He wondered who it could be at this time of night. He heard Al stand up and whisper, "Mustang….".

Ed heard the soft, silky voice of Roy Mustang. "Stand down, Alphonse. I'm only here to see the young Alchemist.". A soft clang signified that Al had sat back down. The balcony door opened, then closed. Mustang stared at Ed for a second, then said, "Good evening, Fullmetal.".

Without looking at him, Ed grunted, "Colonel.".

"You shouldn't be out in the open like this." he said.

"What, I can't even be on a balcony now?" Ed responded.

"Fullmetal… we're only doing this for your own safety, you know." Mustang said with a dangerous look at Ed.

Ed quickly snapped back, "You're out here, aren't you? And don't say it's because you have more experience than me.".

Mustang sighed, then said, "Look, Edward. I didn't come to argue with you. The reason we have you locked away is because you have more skill than most State Alchemists could even dream of having. That makes you more of a target for Scar. The State can't afford to loose an Alchemist like you.".

Ed turned around and looked at Mustang for the first time. He was as well-groomed as always. "I'm flattered, Flame Alchemist." he said with a smirk.

"Eh. I do my best." Mustang said with a blank expression. "Either way, I came to talk to you about the Rockbell girl.".

"What about Winry?" Ed asked, stepping forward.

"Why so protective, Fullmetal? Calm down. Anyway, by now I'm sure you've figured out Scar was the one who killed her parents." Mustang said.

Ed stepped back. "Yes… what about it?" he questioned.

"Well, that may give Scar a more than opportune reason to target her. She needs to be extremely well protected. From here on out, she will have a military guard following her. We need you to tell her this, so she won't be suspicious." Mustang explained.

"Why do I have to tell her?" Ed asked with a straight look at Mustang. "Why can't you do it?".

"Because she absolutely cannot know that Scar killed her parents. Think about it, Fullmetal. You grew up with her. She would absolutely try to go after Scar. And Scar would murder her. And, if we told her that a military guard will be following her, she would get suspicious and try to find out the truth. You know her better than the State does, so you can sugar coat it to make it sound convincing." Mustang explained.

"You do have a point, Colonel…." Ed said, more to himself than to Mustang.

"Either way, tell her. Without letting her know the truth. That's an order, Fullmetal." Mustang said with a small smile.

"Order? Order? You can't order me around!" Ed exclaimed.

"We've done it so far, haven't we? Plus, me and you are both State Alchemists, therefore, we're the same rank. It's up to you whether or not you want to obey. But, if I were you, I would explain to her. Don't let her get suspicious." Mustang said, still smiling.

"As if I have a choice…." Ed murmured.

"It's nice to have some cooperation out of you, half-pint." Mustang chuckled.

Redness came to Ed's face. He began to breathe heavy. "Half… PINT?" Ed screamed. "What gives you… the right to call me a… HALF-PINT?".

"Fullmetal, shush! You'll wake up the girl, you moron!" Mustang whispered hurriedly. Ed turned away from Mustang to calm down. "Now, I'll be on my way, Edward. I'd best be getting back to HQ and make sure Riza hasn't killed Sergeant Fuery yet." Mustang said. He turned and went back into the hotel room.

Ed heard Al whisper, "You shouldn't pick on brother like that, Colonel.".

"If I couldn't do that, then what could I do?" Mustang asked. Ed heard the hotel door open, then close. Ed thought to himself, _Why did 2nd Lt. Ross let that little worm in?_. There were no words to describe the hatred he had for Roy Mustang. Ever since he showed up in Resembool to ask him to become a State Alchemist, Ed had gotten a feeling of distrust around him. That feeling magnified when he showed up a year later to escort him to Central City for the exam. Ed had passed the exam handily, he out-sped the guards protecting Mega Fuehrer President Bradley and put a spear at his throat. Everyone was all up in arms about how extraordinary and shocking Ed's performance was, but Mustang, however, chided him. Told him he needed to watch himself around Mega Fuehrer President Bradley, that if the President felt threatened by him, he would wind up dead. Ed didn't get the feeling that Mustang was jealous, just more… scared. Ed felt as though Mustang was worried that he would one day overcome him. Ever since then, Ed hadn't trusted Mustang. He thought the Colonel would try something. It was also evident that Mustang was always trying to prove dominance over Ed, and Ed noticed it. Ed sighed, then looked down at the empty street below him. There are never any cars this late at night. Though, there weren't that many cars out during the day, even in Central. Cars in Amestris were for the upper-upper class only.

As he stared down at the streetlights, his mind drifted over to Scar. He was worried about his raw strength. He had managed to break Ed's automail arm and destroy half of Al with one well-placed energy blast. And the fact that he was targeting State Alchemists. Ed didn't know much of the story, but Scar was an Ishvarlan, a race nearly eliminated by the State of Amestris in the Ishval Massacre. According to what little he had overheard from Mustang and Riza, the State Alchemists were responsible for the death and destruction in Ishval. So, it was not a wonder that Scar had a vengeance out for State Alchemists. What worried Ed the most, however, was Scar's mysterious "alchemy". He talked about the "right hand of destruction" and the "left hand of creation". Though, he would only use the right hand because he was under the impression that alchemy brought only destruction. Ed had never heard of the left-hand right-hand theory of alchemy. Was it Ishvarlan alchemy? He thought that the Ishvarlans believed in only their religion, which alchemy was shunned by. If this alchemy was powerful enough to eliminate State Alchemists and hold two State Alchemists plus an entire military squadron at bay for nearly an hour, what could it do to Winry?

_Winry…. _Ed thought. He couldn't bear to loose her. Plus, if she got killed by Scar, he knew that he would be responsible for it. She was only here because of him. He couldn't tell her the truth, because, as much as he didn't like to admit it, Mustang was right. She would go after Scar, without a doubt. Ed then realized that he might've made a mistake by giving her a gun. He gave it to her only for protection, but he knew in his heart that she would use it if she needed to. He shrugged the disturbing thought away. His thoughts then shifted to Resembool. To when it was peaceful, carefree, serene…. How Ed longed for those days to return, when he and Al and Winry could argue and pick at each other like kids were supposed to. Ed thought back to a night that seemed to have happened forever ago, though he knew it was only a few weeks back. He thought of the night when he and Winry had shared their first kiss. It happened on her front porch, more towards early morning. Her hair was gorgeous that night…. He knew that he had been horribly unsmooth, but whatever he did, it worked. Ever since then, he had wanted another kiss. But, every time he brought it up, she seemed to skirt around the issue.

He wanted her. He wanted her love, her warmth, her… everything. He constantly wracked his mind on how he could kiss her again. And, every time he tried something new, he always came up empty-handed. His heart fluttered every time he was near her. Ed hated that feeling, though. It was a weakness. A weakness for Winry. But, Ed cared little for strength. The only reason he guarded himself so well was because there were so many enemies. Not necessarily his enemies, but still there were enemies. However, weakness or no weakness, Ed wasn't about to loose Winry. Her emerald colored eyes stood out in his mind. Her eyes always paired with her blonde hair so well. Her hair was an entirely different story. It was soft, silky, and so many other wonderful things that Ed couldn't even begin to describe. He was fully aware that his hair was now much longer than hers, but she could take care of her hair much easier than he could. He had been on the road more in the last 4 years than she would ever be in her entire life. And, when you're on the road by foot, you can walk for 3 days and never come across a settlement. That made personal hygiene a little rough. His thoughts returned to Winry. He had noticed how much she had matured in the past few years. Her body had become more… lady-like, and she had began to look at things in an all new adult manner. It made Ed feel a little uncomfortable, considering she was still a child when he and Al left, but, he liked the new Winry. She was more respectable in this state. Ed's heart throbbed at the thought of Winry's lips. He wanted another kiss so badly….

His thoughts were interrupted when he heard some soft whispering from the room. He couldn't make out the words. He turned around, and saw Winry walking towards the balcony door. He smiled at her. She smiled back as she opened the door and steeped out into the cool fall night air. "Have you slept yet?" she asked.

"Nope." Ed responded. Silence. He knew she was waiting for an explanation. He thought about it for a second, then said, "Scar's worrying me.".

"You shouldn't worry about him. You can take him down. I know it." Winry said, trying to reassure him.

"Winry, last time he destroyed half of Al and my automail arm. Remember how long it took to build a new one?" Ed asked.

"Yeah, and if you break that one, I'll beat you into a pulp. That's the finest piece of work I've ever done." Winry responded.

"It would be worth breaking just to return to Resembool again…." he said.

"Is it worth my wrath?" Winry said with a glint in her eyes.

Ed rubbed his head. "I hate it when you hit me with that wrench.". They looked at each other, then laughed. The first laughter Ed had heard Winry make since she came to Central. It was nice to finally hear her joy again.

"So… I thought I heard Colonel Mustang earlier. Was he actually here? Or was I just dreaming?" Winry asked.

"Much to my dismay, yes. The Colonel paid a visit." Ed said with a light grimace.

"Why so late, I wonder?" Winry pondered.

"'Cause it's too unsafe for a State Alchemist to be out during the day." Ed answered.

"Right, Scar…." Winry said.

"It's the same reason I can't leave this god-forsaken hotel. The same reason why there's two guards standing at the room's door." Ed said with a sigh.

"Hey, at least 2nd Lt. Ross is nice. And Sergeant Bosch just seems a little… flustered, that's all." Winry stated.

"Yeah, but if Scar comes around, two people with little rifles aren't going to do much against an energy blast." Ed responded.

Winry sighed, realizing there was no point in arguing with him, then asked, "So what did Mustang have to say?".

"Nothing much. Just telling me to be careful." Ed said.

"That's it?" she said.

Ed thought for a few seconds. _How can I put this?_. Then, he suddenly realized that he might be able to spin this in his favor. He smiled as a plan formed together. "I had Mustang put out a request." he answered.

"What kind of request?" Winry asked.

"I'm not entirely positive about you walking the streets with Scar on the loose, so I asked Mustang to make a guard follow you from here on out." Ed responded.

"WHAT? I am NOT okay with this!" Winry exclaimed.

"Winry, I did it because I love you." Ed said with a peaceful smile.

Winry started to say something, then stopped. Her eyes got wide, and she started to nervously giggle. "You… you said… you said you loved me!" Winry shrieked.

"Yeah, I would've thought that kiss several nights ago would have proved it…." Ed said, a little put off.

Winry rushed forward and embraced Ed. She placed her forehead against his and made eye contact. "Say no more." she said. She closed her eyes. Ed's heart was pounding out of his chest. _It's gonna' happen… it's gonna' happen!_ he thought. Winry's breath was calm and steady. Her lips met his and hovered there for a split second before making complete contact. Ed's body tingled all over as she locked onto his lips. He felt like he was in cloud nine as his mind cleared of everything but thoughts of Winry. Ed squeezed her tighter and ran his fingers through her hair. He heard her whimper in delight as she breathed out. She pushed her legs as far around his as she could without actually jumping on him. She went in for a deeper kiss. Ed moved his hands down to her hips as he returned the deeper kiss. His eyes fluttered a little as the sensation of kissing Winry again intensified. He grunted a little as he felt her tongue in his mouth.

Winry finally pulled away from Ed with a slight kiss on his neck. Ed was breathing heavy and Winry's face was beat red. "That… that was… amazing!" Ed said between breaths.

"Yeah, well…." Winry said, being bashful. "I've been wanting to do that since… since that night. But, every time you bring it up, I just get… so nervous….".

Ed smiled. "Winry… you don't have to worry. From now on, don't be ashamed to kiss me. Don't be ashamed to say you love me. Because, in my heart, I know you do truly love me. And I truly love you.".

Winry's face returned to a normal shade. "That's sweet, Ed… I do love you. Have for a long time. Since before you left from Resembool 4 years ago.".

"Same here, sweetheart." Ed said. Winry's face turned red again at the term "sweetheart". Realizing he embarrassed her, he quickly said, "Want to go back into the room? I think I've got my fresh air now….". She nodded, and they went back into the room. Upon re-entry, they were met with the dead-set stare from Al. "Don't… even… say… a word." Ed said with an accusing point at him. Al put his hands up in the air, but Ed could tell he couldn't contain his laughter much longer. Winry went and sat back down on the couch, then touched her lips, still smiling. Ed went back into the bathroom and looked at himself in the mirror. _Finally._ he thought.

Back out in the room, Ed heard Al speak. "Y'know, it's kinda ironic that they call State Alchemists like Ed "dogs of the military".".

"How so?" Winry asked.

"Because Ed truly is a dog." Al said, snickering. A hollow clang signified that Winry had punched Al. Ed laughed out loud then turned around, leaning back on the bathroom counter. He smiled. For the first time since news of Scar surfaced, Ed was at peace, and all was right with his world.


End file.
